Cartridge positioner



Jan. 27, 1959 R. H. COLBY CARTRIDGE POSITIONER 2 Sheets-5heet 1 Filed May 15, 1956 INVENTOR. Humming- 1959 R. H. COLBY 2,870,561

CARTRIDGE POSITIONER Filed May 15, 1956 1 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Fig- 5- 5o 0 afl INVENTOR.

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United States Patent CARTRIDGE POSITIONER Richard H. Colby, South Hadley, Mass., assignor to the United States of America, as represented by the Secretary of the Army Application May 15, 1956, Serial No. 585,127

1 Claim. (Cl. 42-18) (Granted under Title 35, U. S. Code (1952), see. 266) The invention described herein may be manufactured and used by or for the Government for governmental purposes without the payment of any royalty thereon.

My invention relates to a gun with a magazine including feed positions for cartridges and more particularly to a device for retaining the cartridges in the feed positions.

Conventional magazines are designed to store two rows of cartridges in staggered relation and are provided with a follower in engagement with a spring to bias the cartridges successively to feed positions in the mouth of the magazine for axial removal therefrom by the bolt of the gun. As each of the cartridges is removed the following cartridge is propelled to one of the feed positions responsive to the feed spring. In this operation, the feed spring surges considerably due to the relatively long unsupported length thereof. The surges have time to subside during low speed gun ramming but in high-speed guns, the bolt necessarily operating at high-speed engages the cartridges before the surges of the feed spring subside, causing frequent malfunctions of the gun.

It is, therefore, an object of my invention to provide a device to compensate for the feed spring surge in highspeed guns.

Another object of my invention is to provide a device to retain the cartridges in the feed positions.

A further object of my invention is to provide a spring device disposed in the receiver of the gun to retain the cartridges in the feed positions.

Other aims and objects of my invention will appear from the following explanation.

In carrying out my invention, a gun including a feed throat and a magazine receivable therein is provided with a device including a pair of spring members disposed in the feed throat for respective engagement with the end portions of cartridges in the feed positions of the magazine to retain the cartridges therein.

For a more complete understanding of my invention reference is made to the following description and the accompanying drawings in which:

Fig. l is an elevation partly in section of a gun incorporating my invention;

Fig. 2 is a view along line 2-2 of Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is a view along line 3-3 of Fig. 1;

Fig. 4 is a perspective view of one of the spring members;

Fig. 5 is an elevation of an alternate embodiment of my invention with the members in normal position; and

Fig. 6 is a view of the embodiment of Fig. 5 shown in the receiver with the members displaced to the operating positions thereof.

Shown in the figures is a gun 12 which is provided with a reciprocating bolt 43 and a feed throat 16 for slidably receiving a box-type magazine 18. Magazine 18, of well-known design, contains a supply of cartridges 20, which are staggered to form double rows, and includes a pair of spaced lips 26 provided at the mouth 2,870,561 Patented Jan. 27, 1959 thereof for respective engagement by the leading cartridges in the double rows to locate such cartridges in a feeding position respective to each of such double rows. Magazine 18 also includes a spring 24 and a follower 22 disposed between the spring and the supply of cartridges for biasing the cartridges towards lips 26 for sequential and alternate engagement therewith. Notches 28 are provided in the front and rear ends of magazine 18 to permit engageable removal of the feeding position cartridges from magazine 18 by bolt 43 during travel thereof to battery position.

The cartridges 20 are securely retained in the feeding positions and isolated from the surgings of spring 24, to assure engagement of the feeding position cartridge by bolt 43, by means of a front retainer 34 and a rear retainer 36. The retainers 34 and 36 are mounted, respectively, to the front and rear walls of feed throat 16 so that, when magazine 18 is mounted therein, such retainers project resiliently through the adjacent ones of the notches 28 for respective engagement with the undersides of the front and rear ends of the cartridges when moved to one of the two feed positions.

Each of the retainers 34 and .36 is provided with a pair of fingers 38 and 39, respectively, and such fingers are so disposed that one of the fingers 38 is engageable with the underside of the front end of a cartridge 20, when in the corresponding one of the two feed positions, while the corresponding one of the fingers 39 is simultaneously engageable with the rear end of such cartridge for jointly securing the engaged cartridge in its feeding position. Thus, the cartridges 2%), after being moved to one of the feed positions, are immediately isolated from the surgings in spring 24 which follow the transfer of the cartridges to the feed positions. The fingers 38 and 39 are disposed so as to be resiliently pressed towards the adjacent ends of feed throat 16 by engagement of the cartridges when moved to one of the feed positions. The fingers spring back to engage the underside of the cartridge after engagement thereof with the corresponding one of the lips 26. The ends of the fingers are rounded, as noted at 42, to prevent damage to the cartridges through the engagement therewith.

In an alternate embodiment of my invention, a pair of retainer members 44 and 46 are mounted, respectively, to the front and rear ends of magazine 18 and below the notches 28 so as to extend upwardly for extension through such notches, as hereinafter described. Members 44 and 46 are provided, respectively, with foot portions 48 and 50 which are secured by rivet means to the respective ends of magazine 18. The lower portions of the members 44 and 46, above the foot portions, are bent angularly outward so as to project resiliently from the ends of the magazine, as is best shown in Fig. 5. Provided respectively along the lengths of the members 44 and 46 are bearing portions 52 and 54 above which the upper portions of the members are bent inwardly so as to be extendable through the adjacent one of the notches 28. Such upper portions of the members 44 and 46 are bifurcated to form pairs of fingers 56 and 58, respectively, thereon, which fingers correspond respectively to the fingers 38 and 39.

Thus, when magazine 18 is dismounted from feed throat 16, members 44 and 46 project outwardly so that the fingers 56 and 58 are clear of the notches 28, and a supply of cartridges 20 may be loaded into the magazine without interference from such fingers. However, when magazine 18 is installed in feed throat 16, the bearing portions 52 and 54, respectively, engage the front and rear ends of the feed throat to press the fingers 56 and 58 resiliently through the notches 28 and into position for engaging the undersides of the cartridges when moved to one of the feeding positions.

Although a particular embodiment of the invention has been described in detail herein, it is evident that many variations may be devised within the spirit and scope thereof and the following claim is intended to include such variations.

I claim:

In combination with a gun provided with a reciprocating bolt and a feed throat, a magazine receivable by the feed throat for storing cartridges arranged in double rows and in staggered relationship, said magazine including a mouth portion and a pair of notches extending from the mouth portion into the front and rear ends of the magazine, a spring and a follower disposed between the spring and the supply of cartridges for transferring the bias of the spring thereto to sequentially move the leading cartridges in the double rows to alternate ones of a pair of feed positions respective thereto, a device for isolating the cartridges in the feed positions from the infiuence of the spring including a pair of retainer members each including a foot portion secured respectively to one end of the magazine below the notch therein, a

5 lower portion extending resiliently outward from the foot portion, a bearing portion disposed at the upper end of said lower portion for sliding engagement with the corresponding end of the feed throat to resiliently press said retainer member inwardly towards the corresponding end of said magazine, and a pair of fingers extending angularly inward from said bearing portions for projection through the adjacent one of the notches when said bearing portion is engaged with the corresponding end of said feet throat, said fingers being so disposed that the corresponding ones thereof on said pair of retainer members are jointly engageable with the undersides of the front and rear ends of the cartridge disposed in the respective one of the two feeding positions.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 807,790 Taylor Dec. 19, 1905 1,878,039 Frommer Sept. 20, 1932 FOREIGN PATENTS 372,653 Great Britain May 12, 1932 644,694 Great Britain Oct. 18, 1950 

